courtesy name
A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theobald ...
Shize, was a
Xiongnu
The Xiongnu (, ) were a tribal confederation of nomadic peoples who, according to ancient Chinese sources, inhabited the eastern Eurasian Steppe from the 3rd century BC to the late 1st century AD. Modu Chanyu, the supreme leader after 20 ...
politician of the
Jin dynasty (266–420)
The Jin dynasty (; ) or the Jin Empire, sometimes distinguished as the (司馬晉) or the (兩晉), was an imperial dynasty of China that existed from 266 to 420. It was founded by Sima Yan (Emperor Wu), eldest son of Sima Zhao, who had pr ...
and
Han Zhao
The Han Zhao (; 304–329 AD), or Former Zhao (), was a dynastic state of China ruled by the Xiongnu people during the Sixteen Kingdoms period of Chinese history. In Chinese historiography, it was given two conditional state titles, the Northern ...
dynasty during the
Sixteen Kingdoms
The Sixteen Kingdoms (), less commonly the Sixteen States, was a chaotic period in Chinese history from AD 304 to 439 when northern China fragmented into a series of short-lived dynastic states. The majority of these states were founded by ...
period. In 304, he joined a plot led by the Xiongnu aristocracy to break away from the ruling Jin dynasty. He was important in getting his great-nephew, Liu Yuan, to lead the Xiongnu and form Han Zhao. After the state's establishment, Liu Xuan became its first Prime Minister and played an influential role in its administration.
Life
Background and early life
Liu Xuan was a member of the
Luandi
The Luandi (; alternatively written as Xulianti ) was the ruling clan of the ancient Xiongnu that flourished between 3rd century BCE to 4th century CE. The form Luandi comes from the ''Book of Han'', while the form Xulianti comes from the ''Book of ...
clan that once ruled over the Xiongnu as chanyus. According to the ''Book of Jin'', he was the great-uncle of Liu Yuan, which implies that he was also the son of
Qiangqu
Qiangqu (; r. 179–188 AD) was the Western Tuqi King, Wise Prince, successor to Huzheng, and chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu from 179 to 188 AD.
Qiangqu's reign coincided with a troublesome time for the Han Empire, and few records address C ...
, and the brother of
Yufuluo
Chizhi Shizhu Hou (; 150–196; r. 188–195 AD), personal name Yufuluo (於夫羅), was a puppet chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu during the late Han Dynasty. In 188, he was appointed chanyu by the Han court following the murder of his father Qian ...
and
Huchuquan
Huchuquan was the last chanyu () of the Southern Xiongnu during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. He was a younger brother of the Xiongnu chanyu in exile, Yufuluo.
History
After his brother died in 195, Huchuqua ...
. During the fall of the
Han dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
, his family moved to
Pingyang County
Pingyang County (, Wenzhounese:''ben yi'') is a county in the prefecture-level city of Wenzhou, located along the southern coast of Zhejiang province, China.
There are two main cities with many surrounding villages in Pingyang. The two main settl ...
in Shanxi. In 216, the warlord-statesman,
Cao Cao
Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate Grand chancellor (China), grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the End of ...
, abolished the chanyu title and divided the Xiongnu into five tribes in
Shanxi
Shanxi (; ; formerly romanised as Shansi) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the North China region. The capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-lev ...
. At this point, the Xiongnu had become subjects of the ruling dynasties in China.
The ''Book of Jin'' describes Liu Xuan as a simple and quiet person, but also one who was eager to learn and cultivate. He gained an appreciation for Han culture, and studied under a scholar from
Le'an Commandery Le'an Commandery ( zh, 樂安郡) was a historical commandery in China, located in present-day central and northern Shandong.
The commandery was established as Qiansheng Commandery (千乘郡) during Emperor Wu of Han's reign from part of Qi Com ...
, Sun Yan (孫炎). Liu Xuan proved to be an exceptional student, and was compared by his teacher to the Xiongnu minister,
Jin Midi
Jin Midi (134–86 BC) (, courtesy name Wengshu (翁叔), formally Marquess Jing of Du (秺敬侯), was a foreign prince and a warrior of the Western Han Dynasty. He was a Hu (胡) "barbarian" from a kingdom in central Gansu area and ser ...
Xiao He
Xiao He (257 BC–193 BC) was a Chinese politician of the early Western Han dynasty. He served Liu Bang (Emperor Gao), the founder of the Han dynasty, during the insurrection against the Qin dynasty, and fought on Liu's side in the Chu–Han Co ...
and
Deng Yu
Deng Yu (2–58 CE), courtesy name Zhonghua, was a Chinese statesman and military commander of the early Eastern Han dynasty who was instrumental in Emperor Guangwu's reunification of China. Although acquainted during his childhood with Liu Xiu, ...
. After completing his studies, he returned to his hometown and lived in recluse for many years.
Service under the Jin dynasty
During the early days of the Jin dynasty, the Inspector of Bingzhou, Wang Guang (王廣), recommended Liu Xuan to
Emperor Wu of Jin
Emperor Wu of Jin (; 236 – 16 May 290), personal name Sima Yan (), courtesy name Anshi (安世), was the grandson of Sima Yi, nephew of Sima Shi and son of Sima Zhao. He became the first emperor of the Jin dynasty after forcing Cao Huan, ...
. Following a meeting between the two, Emperor Wu became impressed by Liu Xuan's character, and so appointed him as Commander of the Right Tribe. During his tenure, Liu Xuan was well-loved by his tribe due to his integrity. Afterwards, he became Chief Commandant of the Northern Division and Worthy Prince of the Right.
Rebellion against Jin
Between 300 and 306, northern China was engulfed in civil wars due to the
War of the Eight Princes
The War of the Eight Princes, Rebellion of the Eight Kings, or Rebellion of the Eight Princes () was a series of civil wars among kings/princes (Chinese: ''wáng'' 王) of the Chinese Jin dynasty from 291 to 306 AD. The key point of contention in ...
. During the Cao Wei and Jin dynasty, the Xiongnu nobles, including Liu Xuan, began to resent their subservient status. In 304, taking advantage of the civil war, they began plotting to break away from Jin, and Liu Xuan played vital part in their planning. During a secret meeting, Liu Xuan said to the conspirators:
Liu Xuan also recommended that they choose his great-nephew, the Worthy Prince of the Left, Liu Yuan, to become their leader. The conspirators accepted and acclaimed Liu Yuan as their Grand Chanyu. During this time, Liu Yuan was a general of the Prince of Chengdu,
Sima Ying
Sima Ying (司馬穎) (279 – December 306), courtesy name Zhangdu (章度), was a Jin Dynasty (266–420) imperial prince who served briefly as his brother Emperor Hui's regent and crown prince. He was the sixth of eight princes commonly asso ...
in Yecheng. The Xiongnu then sent an affiliate, Huyan You (呼延攸), to inform him of the plot, which Liu Yuan agreed. However, he initially failed to convince Sima Ying to let him return home, so he ordered Huyan You to instruct Liu Xuan and the conspirators to rally the five tribes first. After receiving permission, Liu Yuan went to Lishi (離石, in modern
Lüliang
Lüliang or Lyuliang () is a prefecture-level city in the west of Shanxi province, People's Republic of China, bordering Shaanxi province across the Yellow River to the west, Jinzhong and the provincial capital of Taiyuan to the east, Linfen t ...
, Shanxi), where Liu Xuan and the others saluted him as Grand Chanyu.
Shortly after returning to the Xiongnu, Sima Ying was defeated by the Jin warlord, Wang Jun, with the help of the
Xianbei
The Xianbei (; ) were a Proto-Mongolic ancient nomadic people that once resided in the eastern Eurasian steppes in what is today Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Northeastern China. They originated from the Donghu people who splintered into the ...
. Liu Yuan contemplated attacking the Xianbei and Wuhuan, but Liu Xuan and other Xianbei leaders objected, seeing them as potential allies. They instead proposed that he shift his focus entirely on Jin and elevate himself to the same standing as the chanyu,
Huhanye
Huhanye (), born Jihoushan (), was a Chanyu of the Xiongnu Empire, the son of Xulüquanqu Chanyu. He rebelled in 59 BC with the aid of Wushanmu and Woyanqudi Chanyu soon committed suicide, leaving the Xiongnu torn apart by factional strife. By 55 ...
. Although Liu Yuan took their advice, he added that instead of following Huhanye, he should strive to be like
Emperor Gaozu of Han
Emperor Gaozu of Han (256 – 1 June 195 BC), born Liu Bang () with courtesy name Ji (季), was the founder and first emperor of the Han dynasty, reigning in 202–195 BC. His temple name was "Taizu" while his posthumous name was Emper ...
and Cao Cao. Hearing this declaration, Liu Xuan and the others kowtowed and exclaimed that Liu Yuan had surpassed all three.
Service under Han Zhao
Later in 304, Liu Yuan established his state of Han (later renamed Zhao in 319) and named himself King of Han. Liu Xuan and the others wanted him to proclaim himself as emperor, but Liu Yuan preferred to follow in Emperor Gaozu’s footsteps. Because Liu Xuan had been pivotal in getting him on the throne, Liu Yuan greatly appreciated and respected him. Thus, Liu Xuan became the state’s first Prime Minister. For the next four years, he was heavily involved in the state’s military as well as foreign and domestic affairs. It was said that no one in Han Zhao, including his other relatives, was able to reach his level of achievements.
Soon, Liu Xuan also became Grand Marshal and Chief Controller of all military affairs. In 308, he, along with 64 other officials, finally convinced Liu Yuan to declare himself emperor. However, just one month after Liu Yuan’s declaration, Liu Xuan died of natural causes in 4 December 308.(丙午，漢都督中外諸軍事、領丞相、右賢王宣卒。) ''Zizhi Tongjian'', vol.86 Oddly, if he was indeed Liu Yuan's great-uncle and Qiangqu's son, he would have lived up to at least 120, as Qiangqu died in 188.
Book of Jin
The ''Book of Jin'' is an official Chinese historical text covering the history of the Jin dynasty from 266 to 420. It was compiled in 648 by a number of officials commissioned by the imperial court of the Tang dynasty, with chancellor Fang X ...
Zizhi Tongjian
''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...
Spring and Autumn Annals of the Sixteen Kingdoms
The ''Spring and Autumn Annals of the Sixteen Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese title ''Shiliuguo Chunqiu'' () is a Chinese biographical historical work of the Sixteen Kingdoms compiled by the Northern Wei official Cui Hong between 501 and 52 ...